Boston Celtics vs. Philadelphia 76ers preview, injury report, and info - December 20, 2021
WCVB.com
The Boston Celtics took down the New York Knicks in their last outing, and will now look to do the same against the Philadelphia 76ers. These two teams faced off not too long ago, with Boston barely squeaking by with the win. It was a defensive battle where neither team was able to crack 90 points.
Boston Celtics vs. Philadelphia 76ers preview, injury report, and info
How to Watch
Location: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Time: 7:30 p.m. (EST)
Channel(s): NBC Sports Boston
Boston Celtics Breakdown
The Celtics have had an up-and-down month of December so far, and the number of COVID-related absences certainly doesn’t help. They had ten players listed on their injury report yesterday, and seven of those are due to the league’s health and safety protocols. If that number stands true into today, then the C’s would only have nine players available tonight against Philadelphia.
In their last time out, Josh Richardson’s 27 points were able to lift the C’s to victory. Unfortunately, he’s one of the many players in protocols right now. However, Payton Pritchard, who scored 16 points against the Knicks, will be available. Pritchard showed off his long-range game against New York, and after the game, head coach Ime Udoka said that he still has “extreme confidence” in Pritchard. With the number of absences the C’s are dealing with, the sophomore point guard will likely have a larger role for a while.
In addition, the C’s have signed two players via the hardship exception in the past few days. Since they are missing at least four players due to health and safety protocols, they are required to sign players to replace them, per the NBA’s new rules. Boston signed forward Justin Jackson and veteran wing CJ Miles. Jackson has spent the season playing with the Texas Legends, the Dallas Mavericks’ G-League team. He’s had multiple 30-point games and shot the ball well from three whilst with the Legends. As for Miles, the 34-year-old hasn’t spent time in the NBA since November of 2019.
Philadelhpia 76ers Breakdown
The 76ers are dealing with a ton of absences of their own. They have a few players in COVID protocols, as well as a bunch of players dealing with injuries. Philadelphia’s game against the New Orleans Pelicans was postponed yesterday due to player availability on both sides. Notable players dealing with injuries/protocols include Joel Embiid, Andre Drummond, and Georges Niang. Philadelphia also just signed guard Tyer Johnson to help patch up their roster.
Record-wise, Philadelphia is on-par with the C’s so far this season. They sit at 15-15 on the season, tied with the Celtics for seventh in the Eastern Conference (although Boston currently holds the tiebreaker). Embiid has been the key to their success this season. They are 12-7 in games when he plays and 3-8 in games where he does not.
Tobias Harris has been struggling this year, shooting less than 30 percent from behind the arc. Tyrese Maxey, on the other hand, has thrived in the starting point guard role. He’s slowed down a bit after a hot start, but he’s still putting up 17.0 points on very efficient shooting splits. In addition, players such as Seth Curry, Shake Milton, and Niang have been contributing to the scoring column in bunches. All of this help has been welcomed due to the continued absence of All-Star point guard Ben Simmons, who has yet to appear in a game for the 76ers this season.
Injury Report
According to the latest injury report, which was last night, the C’s could be down ten players. Seven of those guys are in the league’s health and safety protocols - Al Horford, Grant Williams, Richardson, Juancho Hernangomez, Jabari Parker, Sam Hauser, and Brodric Thomas. Meanwhile, Dennis Schroder (non-COVID-related illness), Romeo Langford (neck), and Jayson Tatum (ankle) are all questionable.
The 76ers have eight players on their injury report (not including Simmons). Milton, Drummond, and Niang are all in the NBA’s health and safety protocols. On top of that, Jaden Springer (concussion) and Furkan Korkmaz (illness) are out as well. As for players listed as questionable, Danny Green (hip), Embiid (ankle), and Maxey (quad), all fall under that category.
Keys to the Game
This is a tough game to gauge, simply because it’s unknown which players will be playing at the moment. That being said, the one thing Boston can focus on is themselves. If they keep the ball moving and don’t get stuck in an isolation-heavy, stagnant offense, they have a chance against any team. Jaylen Brown fell into that trap a bit against the Knicks, but it didn’t end up hurting the team too much. Boston needs to focus on running their offense the right way, which is by moving the ball and great off-ball movement. If they can do that and stick to the basics, they should be fine.
Defensively, Embiid’s status come game time will have a huge impact on how the C’s matchup with the 76ers. With Horford out, Boston doesn’t have anyone that matches up well with Embiid. If the All-Star big man plays, the C’s are going to have to defend by committee. This means helping off of guys around the perimeter in order to focus on Embiid. Everyone is going to have to stay active and aware on defense because hitting your rotations will be crucial tonight.
Lastly, and this has been said already, the Celtics need to keep things simple. With new players being added to the rotation and deep-bench guys earning more minutes, there’s never been a better time to stick to the basics. This doesn’t mean the C’s shouldn’t be moving on offense, but players need time to get used to Udoka’s offense. Even the players who’ve been on the team all year but don’t see much playing time need to adjust on the fly. Boston should let their best players handle the ball, keep the offense simple, and play hard on defense. That’s the best game plan tonight.
Pregame Show
Make sure to tune in to our live pregame show, “The Banner Town Build Up.” We are live 30 minutes before every Celtics game at @GuyBostonSports on YouTube and Facebook. See you there at 7:00 p.m. (EST) tonight!
